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Humanism In John Steinbeck's The Grapes Of Wrath

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Unselfish concern for the welfare of others without expectation of reward, recognition, or return is the golden rule of humanism. To give is to receive especially when it truly comes from the heart. Giving without expecting anything in return is an art of life. When disaster and hardship strikes, lending a hand without expecting anything in return is doing things for the greater good that drives home the true meaning of humanity. In our society, there is a great level of inequality that creates hardship for some individuals. As there are a lot of problems in the world, it is up to us to help each other out in times of need. Throughout the book, The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck displayed humanism through the characters when they faced hardship …show more content…

A society where if you are born poor more than likely you'll be poor. The obstacles and struggles that people face is what test people. The farmers and Joads have been affected by the recent drought, which has caused them to not bring in any money. The bank and the landowners have been kicking tenants out of their land. The economic depression affected families who were not rich.Banks greed and guilt is what started this it drove lots of families to get up and leave to find work. In the book John Steinbeck states, "And now they were weary and frightened because they had gone against a system they did not understand and it had beaten them. They knew the team and the wagon were worth much more. They knew the buyer man would get much more, but they didn't know how to do it. Merchandizing was a secret to them"(Steinbeck,pg.97). John Steinbeck states that this "game" that they are in is something that seems like they cannot win. This system that people are in is a system that seems like it cannot be defeated, their the pawns in a game of chess. This struggle that they are facing will not break down the families they will find a solution and work together to overcome

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John Steinbeck has been a pillar of American literature for decades. His work, especially Grapes of Wrath and The Harvest Gypsies, helped to shed light on some of the issues that plagued California, and the rest of the United States during the Great Depression. His works accentuate the theme of the importance of community, especially when those with the power to help don 't. These novels take place during the Great Depression, a time when there were very few jobs, little stability, widespread poverty, and diminished hopes for the future. This era sets the stage on which these stories take place. During these harsh times, many people turned to the government or banks for help, but they were turned down by the banks because they wanted a profit, or they bankrupted, and the government 's resources were stretched so low they could only help few people.

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The tone of chapter 11 in John Steinbeck's, “The Grapes of Wrath,” is sympathetic, sad and hopeless. His word choice and syntax show how the sad houses were left to decay in the weather. His use of descriptive words paints a picture in the reader's mind. As each paragraph unfolds, new details come to life and adds to the imagery. While it may seem unimportant, this intercalary chapter shows how the effects of the great depression affected common households.

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Steinbeck’s uses the intercalary chapters to describe the migrant’s meaningful struggle. “Fear the time when Manself will not suffer and die for a concept, for this one quality is the foundation of Manself, and this one quality is man, distinctive in the universe”(p.205). Steinbeck uses this chapter to describe how the farmers may be dying of starvation, but they are dying for a cause that defines them, and will dye to save those they care for, in order to get what they deserve in the future. Humanity would not improve or grow stronger against evil if they gave up on fighting for their cause. Steinbeck uses this chapter to show the struggle and fight of all the people, and shows how the Joads too, are fighting toward a goal that mankind dying

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Throughout history, authors utilize the written word to either expose grievous faults within society or celebrate the feats of society. John Steinbeck is certainly no exception as he has constructed many pieces which serve to enlighten the audience on the accomplishments and faults of society. The novel, The Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck attempts to expose faults within society which include prejudice and the overwhelming desire for greed. He does so through his use of allusions, diction, and characterization. John Steinbeck in the novel, The Grapes of Wrath, attempts to expose one of society’s most detrimental flaws--prejudice through the use of repetition and characterization.

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Community, so close to Steinbeck’s heart, is exaggerated in every possible way in this novel. In an eloquent way, he molds the reader’s hearts to believe that a communal soul (or oversoul) is best for the people as well. Truly, the language and rhetoric applied in order to encourage this philosophy is unlike any other writing by Steinbeck, or any other socialist writer for that

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Grapes of Wrath Synthesis Essay Coretta Scott King, prominent civil rights activist and wife of Martin Luther King Jr., once stated, “The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members”. King argues that the real value of a community lies in how people are treated within the group rather than the communities effect on the outer world. During the Great Depression, the common experience of poverty throughout the nation brought people together to form communities that assisted each other in their aim of survival. The struggle prevalent across the working class created a culture and community that was reliant on this compassion for each other.

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Intercalary Chapter Literary Analysis During the Great Depression, the nation as a whole was stripped of financial security and forced into a survivalist way of living. This changed the ways that people interacted with one another and the overall mentality of society. In the Grapes of Wrath, the Joad family is torn from their land and find themselves with nothing, a common story for migrant farmers of that time, derogatorily called “Okies” by Californians. But this is not the only group that is struggling, the entire county was in a state of panic and bruteness, no matter how “well off” they seemed to be.

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The Joads find their motivation by helping each other through tough situations. Steinbeck shows the determination of the human spirit

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In The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck follows the Joad family as they suffer the hardships caused by the Dust Bowl in the 1930’s. The most important lesson people can learn from the novel is the value of a human life. Although the 1930’s was a low point in American society, the ill-treatment of human beings is still relevant today. Just like Jim Casy’s philosophy, it is important to fight for the rights of the people and their dignity. There are several examples of oppression in The Grapes of wrath.

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Violence isn't the way to achieve ones goals. Almost everyone has someone of something that stands in the way of their ultimate goal. Many people come to a point where they feel that the only way to achieve that goal is at the expensive of another. This isn't necessarily the case. Rather then inflicting violence on one another we must use the intelligence we were blessed with.

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This social philosophy preserves that human survival is dependent upon the banding together of humans to find strength in group unity and action. Now, if we elaborate a conclusion based in this scene then we can relate this topic to an economic disaster. Because, the elaboration of this theory in the film is seen in the education of the troubled (tom) and disadvantaged (Joad’s family) with the organization of unions and strikes as vehicles of group protest and change. In final consideration, “The Grapes of Wrath” emphasizes the unfair treatments that the migrants receive and how this doesn’t apply to their hardship; it diminishes them as human

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Steinbeck is criticizing the economic system that drove farmers to homelessness and hard poverty. He is also critical of this capitalist economic system because, in addition to destroying

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